Residents undoubtedly noticed smoke billowing up from Snake Hill last week.
About 15 volunteer members of the Sundre Fire Department teamed up on Wednesday, May 2 with a crew of 12 wildland firefighters from Alberta Agriculture and Forestry on a controlled burn along a portion of the south facing side of the hill.
“It’s kind of like fire-smarting your community by taking the fuel hazards away and removing them in a controlled manner,” said Sundre Chief Marty Butts.
Efforts typically are focused on high-risk areas such as behind the soccer and baseball diamonds, where there tends to be a lot of activity that could potentially result in a cigarette butt or hot vehicle exhaust inadvertently igniting a potentially catastrophic blaze that spreads quickly out of control with an abundance of dry material fuelling the fire, said Butts.
So the exercise not only reduces that possibility, but the training also provides an excellent opportunity for the Sundre Fire Department to work with the provincial crew, he said.
“In our eyes, it was a perfect controlled burn with cross-training objectives achieved. We work hand in hand with forestry when we go into the West Country, so it’s a good way to get on the same page.”
Butts said he hoped the controlled burn did not overly inconvenience nearby residents, as where there is fire there is also smoke.
There is a narrow window of opportunity to do a coordinated controlled burn before provincial wildfire crews get too busy as the fire season picks up and volunteers get the job done above and beyond their regular responsibilities, he added.
“I’m very pleased to see the firefighters rise to the occasion,” the chief said, adding that removing excess fuels is part of the equation to ensure the community is as fire smart as possible.
“We can burn just as easily as other places like Fort Mac and Slave Lake,” he said.
“With the right conditions, we could be facing a similar situation.”
That’s why taking proactive preventive steps to reduce the potential for a fire disaster is so important. There might be some complaints about the air quality throughout the controlled burn’s duration, but better that than dealing with smoke for nearly the entire summer, as did many communities in B.C. last year, he said.
“We’re trying to prevent that.”
Following the late start to spring, the fire season has so far been fairly average, although calls have been picking up, he said.
“Grass fire season is upon us.”
As of Thursday, May 3, Mountain View County had issued a partial fire ban, essentially meaning a temporary suspension on any previously issued fire permits until further notice. However, barbecues and backyard firepits are still allowed, he said.
Visit the county’s website or call 403-335-3311 for the latest updates.
Butts also encourages residents to make their properties as fire smart as they can. Failure to take preventive steps potentially jeopardizes the community by leaving Sundre more susceptible to suffering far worse damage should a sudden fire sweep through, he said.
“Don’t wait until it’s too late.”
